Ninja Gaiden: Earning The Rigth
by Ligthingtooth
Summary: being the chosen one to save the world from fiends and monsters is not easy, and a young Ryu Hayabusa finds how easy it is to make enemies that could come back and take revenge in the strangest ways, as he finds himself as the bait in a trap.


His body was sore all over. That was his first thought as he came back to consciousness.

A young man, no older than 17-20 years old at the most, even as it was had to tell behind the black ninja mask and hood. The mask was hiding his face apart from his eyes, and yet the metal plate decoration over the forehead, took most of the attention at first away from his eyes. Eyes that almost seemed shine with a light green color, had they been open at that point.

_Damn._ He through as he lay still, keeping his eyes closed and just feeling his body hurt.

He was dressed in a black leather suit that sat quite tight on his body. He was mostly unharmed, save for a few scrapes and cuts, but nothing serious.

_That's what I get for trying to do to many things at once._ He cursed in his mind, remembering quite well why his body was hurting, especially the back of his head, that were bleeding ever so slightly.

---

Ryu Hayabusa, the descendant of the great Dragon linage, and one of the Hayabusa clan's best warrior ninja. His father Joe Hayabusa was the head of the clan and very proud of his son, and over how much Ryu put into his training.

Ryu's latest mission had been to clear out a hive of spider fiends that had been terrorizing an area, for some time. This would be the mission, that if he succeeded, he would be given the title of Master Ninja. Something he had been working very hard to become.

Finding the hive had been a breeze and it seemed almost too easy to clear it out as well, little did he know that the hive had only been the bait.

Just as he was finishing up his work with the hive fiends, out of the darkness of the woods around him, came nothing less than a little army of lizard fiends.

Ryu's eyes narrowed as he saw them coming. There had been no reports about there being any lizard fiends there, or that there were that many of them. As a large dark green lizard boss fiend came out of the woods, rushing towards him, Ryu drew his sword, and sank down into a defensive position.

"Get him!" The boss fiend called, pointing his ax towards the lone ninja.

As the battle broke out for real, Ryu was not giving in for a second. Slashing his way thought the fiends, Ryu noticed how there seemed to be no end to them, yet soon enough he was battling the boss fiend alone, still surrounded by the lesser fiends.

"Good to see you didn't at least underestimate me." Ryu said as he slashed lose on the leader.

"Oh we know well of who you are, and we have some plans for you, boy!" The friend snared, as he struggled to block and parry the young Ninja's sword.

As their battle raged, some of the lesser fiends tried to get up behind him, but Ryu was too quick. As the lesser fiends tried to jump him, he jumped up and out of the way, just at the moment the leader fiend slashed at him, and ended up killing his own minions in stead. As Ryu turned around in the air to land behind the boss fiend, a lesser flying fiend came up behind him and grabbed him, taking him with him higher into the air. Ryu turned in his grasp, and used his sword to cut of the head of the monster. Yet as the plan was to get free of the dead fiend and turn around in the air, slowing his descent and land safely. The plan failed as the fiend held him to tight, and both of them fell to the ground way to fast. Ryu's only option was to turn himself and the fiend's body around and to land on the fiend to protect himself.

The landing was way harder that he had expected and he was thrown of the body, flying with his back first. Ryu tried to turn himself around and stop, but he didn't have enough time to do so, and slammed his back head on a large rock, hard enough to make him pass out.

----

He growled low in pain, wanting to rub the sore spot in his back head, when he realized that moving his hands at all was impossible. Ropes held his arms behind his back and were biting into his skin. His wrists were tied to the other arms elbow, rendering both arms useless. He also had a rope around the overarms pinning his arms further fast. He opened his eyes quickly and found himself laying in a cave on his back. Feeling that his feet were free of any rope, he kicked out and trashed about trying to brake free of the rope that held him.

Heavy footsteps came towards him suddenly and the boss fiend from the battle before stepped up to him.

"Well well you are a awake at last. I knew you would wake up, after all, you are the son of our ever so hated enemy. You dragon ninjas does not die easily." The fiend growled looking down at him. "Or killing of your clan would be easy." The fiend hissed. Ryu shifted where he lay and gave the fiend a cold stare.

"Then why have you not killed me yet?" He asked, his voice were as cold as ice. The fiend stomped his foot down right next to Ryu's head. dust and sand flew up and got in one of Ryu's eyes and he closed it hard, struggling in his rope for a second.

"I told you. We have other plans for you." The fiend said and picked him up by the neck. Lifting him up to his face, Ryu wasted no time in delivering a painfully hard kick to the fiend's nose. The fiend roared angry but did not let go of Ryu's neck. Instead the hold tightened and Ryu winced in pain. The fiend took hold around his feet and held them hard.

" You better not try that again." The fiend growled and started to pull on the feet. Ryu closed his eyes as the fiend pulled on his feet, until it felt like he was about to tear his legs of. The fiend grinned seeing Ryu in pain and stopped pulling, giving Ryu a chance to catch his breath. Ryu was breathing strained now but turned his cold light green eyes to the fiends red glowing eyes. The two of them looked at each other coldly for a second before the fiend growled.

"You are covered in the blood of my kind." The fiend hissed as he walked two steps forward, still holding the ninja hard.

"You better wash of!" He growled and threw Ryu into a pond in the cave. The pond was deeper that it looked, and the cold water made his body go numb almost instantly. Had Ryu had the time, he could have hold his breath for a very long time, but the shock of the cold water and the hit with the water had knocked the air out of him. He struggled to get his hands free, and kicked with his legs to get to the surface. Had his legs been tied at that point he would never made it, yet he manged to break the surface and take in what he could of air. Struggling to keep his head over the water, he took in just as much water as he did air. He could hear the boss fiend laugh at him as well as he heard some laughter from the other fiends in the cave, something that made Ryu's blood boil but he had enough just staying alive.

The boss fiend suddenly came towards him and took hold of one of Ryu's feet as the ninja kicked in the water, lifting him clear of the water. Ryu gasped for air, wanting to cough up the water that had gotten into his lungs, yet kept his breathing still, and suffered in silence as the fiend held him.

"Now then. Once I hang you out to dry, your father should be coming pretty soon, don't you think?" The fiend laughed as he lifted Ryu up so that their eyes met.

"My father..." Ryu manged to say, actually glad he was hanging upside down as the water in his lungs were forced out of them.

"Indeed, your father and your kind have been for ages now killing of my kind, and your father killed my only son. So in return I am going to kill you, his only son and then kill him slowly." The fiend hissed angry, his grip around Ryu's foot tightening painfully. Ryu said nothing, merely looking at the fiend coldly.

"Your father is going to suffer as I have suffered." The fiend said and seemed to calm down, his grip losing the painful hold around Ryu's foot yet he was not letting go.

"Still... There could be some time before your father gets here.. Maybe we should have some more fun with you.." The fiend grinned at him.

Ryu hang upside down, still shivering from the cold water and struggling to draw his breath, yet he manged to keep his face and body still, he was not about to show this fiend any signs of weakness.

He struggled to get his hands free again, growling low, hating the fact that they were gonna use him as bait to get his father, and as of now there was nothing he could do about it.

------------------------------------------------------------------------

Back at the village, Ryu's father was beginning to worry. Getting up from the floor and walking away from the tea he had tried to enjoy, he looked out at the village from his window.

_He should have been back by now... _His father worriedly thought.

Joe Hayabusa, the current head of the Hayabusa clan, a man starting to take on years but still as strong and powerful as in his prime. he was dressed in a simple white suit, his long auburn hair was tied up behind him. His beard and mustache was short but well trimmed. He had an old battle scar across his left cheek, that started from his cheekbone and down into the beard. large brown brows were casting a dark shadow over his worried auburn eyes. The furs on his forehead told of a long life and made his face look even more concerned.

His eyes narrowed as he saw that soon the sun would sett, it was unlike Ryu to use this long on a fiend hive.. Usually Joe would never worry about his son like this, as Ryu had proven time and a time again just how great of a warrior he was, but there was something in the air that felt different. He had tried to meditate to try and find the source of the feeling with no success. Growing even more worried, he could not mediate any longer and had sent word of one of the fastest ninjas the village had.

Soon a young ninja entered through his door.

"My lord." The ninja said and bowed his head in respect. "You sent for me?" Joe nodded.

"Has my son returned yet?" He asked. The young ninja looked confused for a second.

"No my lord, there has been no word of Ryu-sama." The ninja answered. Joe turned his look outside again.

"Ride out... Head towards the wally the hive was and have a look around. He is probably on his way, but he might be hurt." Joe ordered, before adding so low that the young ninja almost didn't hear him. "It unlike him to be so late..."

"Yes my lord." The ninja said and hurried outside to start his mission.

Yet as the ninja left, he wondered what was going on. He could hear the villagers also having noticed that Ryu had been gone for a long time and he could hear them muttering to themselves, as he left the village behind.

Joe stood and watched him go, feeling his worry grow with every passing second.

---

A while later Joe was again trying to meditate and find some peace, only to find it just as dark and unpleasant as before.

"My lord!" The ninja he had sent out, entered the room quickly, bowing politely even as he was heaving for air. Joe's eyes narrowed as he saw this but nodded.

"What have you found?" He asked short and precise, as he stood up.

"My lord, Ryu-sama has not yet returned, nor was he on the road home." The ninja said, looking more down on the floor, than meting his lords eyes. Joe turned his back on the ninja and looked out at the land.

"How far did you travel?" He asked, his voice somehow manged to come out calm. He did not turn as the worry in his eyes were clear to see, and he did not want the young ninja to see that.

"All the way, my lord. I found his horse at the forest edge..." The ninja stopped for a second and gathered his breath and courage, before continuing.

"Farther into the woods I found an area that had been turned into a battle field. The number of dead fiends were amazing..." The ninja trailed of, impressed with how much Ryu could do alone.

"How many?" Joe asked turning around this time. The ninja jumped at his sudden words and quickly gathered his wits about him again.

"At least 70 to 80 dead, but there seemed like it have been more of them, from the tracks to judge." The ninja answered quickly. Joe turned his look away from the ninja, thinking to himself.

"Our information said that there was only around 30, 50 tops..." He muttered to himself.

"My lord... There was no sign of Ryu-sama anywhere, but this..." He said and hold out a sword in his hand, bowing down. Joe came towards him and took the sword from his hand.

Holding the sword in his hand, Joe's legs felt like they were gonna give in for a second.

"Ryu's favorite sword...." His voice shook a bit as he muttered this, before a light of anger came to his eyes.

"Where and how did you find this?" He asked hard and cold to the ninja.

"On the battle ground, my lord. It was standing out of the ground alone." The ninja answered quickly.

"Damn.. They have him.." Joe growled, looking out at the sun finally setting.

"Ready my horse." He said turning away from the ninja completly, his voice were as cold as ice.

"Yes, my lord." The ninja answered and hurried down to the sables.

Joe stood looking at the sun coloring the sky red. His hand closing around the sword hard.

"Stay brave, son." He said, before laying Ryu's sword down to get his own from it's place.

The Dragon Sword, handed down from father to son, through the long proud past of the Dragon clan. Just during the time Joe had carried the sword, he could not count how many times it had saved his own or others lifes. He could only hope that it would help him save a very important life today.

Taking his own white scarf, he took it around his head to form the ninja mask and hood. He also took on the same metal plate decor over his forehead as Ryu had, only his were ever so slightly different. Joe's had more artwork on it, there was a faint markings of a dragon decorating it.

Putting the Dragon Blade in place behind his back, he took Ryu's sword and fasten it to his belt. As he left the room, he left his elder self behind. Through the halls of the castle, the people that where there, stepped out of the way in respect for the great warrior that now passed them.

---

As Joe got to the sables, he found two of his closest friends waiting.

"You are going after him then?" One of them asked.

An older Ninja, yet could still kick the ass of any fiend that got in his way. His long hair was turning more and more white. He was blind on his left eye and had a deep scar across it, courtesy of a fiend in a battle long past. Genjiro was one of Joe's oldest friends and they had been in many bloody battles together. He was dressed simply as he was enjoying for the most part the peace and quiet of the town, choosing to step out of the battles, since he was getting older.

"We were tricked." Joe said as the other friend broth him his horse.

An younger friend of the two others, Shin was a friend to count on if you were in a fix. He was dressed in a black ninja suit and had his mask on, but he did not have the hood up, his black hair where tided up behind his head and flowed freely in the weak breeze. His dark eyes looked at his lord and close friend.

"What do you mean?" Shin asked, worry beginning to form in his eyes. As Joe got on his horse, he drew Ryu's sword and showed it to them.

"In an area where there should only have been a small hive of fiends, this sword was found, between at least 70 dead fiends.. This was a trap, and we fell for it." Joe growled. his fiends looked at the sword and looked at their leader.

"Then Ryu-sama is in real danger. Only the ancestors would know what those beasts would do to him." Shin said worried.

"Then let's go!" said Genjiro as he came with his and his friend's horse.

"No, this was a personal challenge to me, or they would never have left his sword. I need you two to stay here and keep this place safe. We don't know if they are hoping we would leave the castle with a greater force, and then strike when the defence is down." Joe said and nodded to his fiends, as he placed Ryu's sword back in the sheath.

"And if the have harmed Ryu in any way, I will set loose all of the Hayabusa wrath down on them." He growled angry. The other two nodded and moved out of the way.

As Joe made his horse run, he whispered low to the horse.

"Carry me swiftly, White Moon, Ryu is in danger." The horse neighed in answer and ran even faster.

There was a reason why joe took the horse to get there. The area where the fiend hive had been, was in a little wally up in the mountains not to far from the castle. There was no way up to it but the way only the horses or man could go, a small path through the sharp cliffs. Flying there was out of the question as the strong winds in the mountains made it too dangerous.

White Moon, Joe's horse stepped on the narrow road as easily as if it was a high road. Coming in to the wally, Joe saw Ryu's horse, Shadow Wind walking restless back and forward before the woodland. Jumping down from White Moon, he greeted the black horse.

"Easy Shadow Wind, easy." As the horse whined low, Joe petted the horse.

"No sign of him then? Easy Shadow Wind, Ryu can take care of himself, and I will find him." He said and turned to the dense woodland in front of him.

Joe left White Moon with Shadow Wind and headed into the woods. There was only a few birds making sounds in some trees father away but as he came out there clearing in the wood land, he stopped. The area was filled with the dead body's of fiends.

Walking slowly through the battle field, his experience told him how the battle had gone down, by looking at the tracks and on the dead fiends.

He saw how first the spider fiends had lured Ryu further into the clearing where the real force of fiends had came at him. He saw by the tracks how Ryu had moved and how the boss fiend had come at him, there was no doubt about those tracks.

Finding at one point that his son's prints never touched down from the jump, Joe followed the tracks of the other fiends what had been ruining towards something. Finding the decapitated and somewhat flatter flying fiend, he quickly noticed the rock, just below it were the a track of a man, recognizable even with all of the fiend tacks over it.

Looking at the rock itself, his eyes narrowed as he saw the blood on it.

"Ryu..." Joe said low and then saw the boss fiend tracks walking away from where Ryu had been. Following the tracks, he came to a place in the area were there was a weak mark in the ground. Taking his sword, the Dragon Blade and took the sword down into the mark. This was were the ninja had found Ryu's sword. He could also see the weak footprints of him, confirming what he knew. The tracks of the fiends disappeared into the woods. He would lose valuable time if he was to look for them in this dense woods, and time was something he was sure he did not have much of. Seeing nothing special from where he stood by the place where the sword had been, he bent down on one of his knees as he held his hands on the hilt, as he rested his forehead to his hands.

"Great ancestors, show me the way." He muttered low. A strange humming sound came from the sword, making joe look up at the hilt. The way Joe stood now, he saw strait at the hilt and found the hilt point to the mountain, Joe found himself looking strait at an old cave. Getting to his feet, he bowed to the sword, thanking his ancestors, took the sword and took of towards the cave.

"Stay strong, Ryu." He said low as he hurried through the woods, keeping his eyes peeled for any fiends.

---------------------------------------------------------------

Staying strong was just what Ryu was trying to do at that point.

The boss fiend had left him at the mercy of the lesser fiends and they were enjoying ever second they could torment him.

He was laying on his back, and struggled to free himself.

They had shifted his ropes a bit, his arms were still bound together, but the two of the fiends were now holding them down above his head. His feet were unbound still, but like with the hands, the fiends had him pinned to the ground. His suit were ripped with bleeding wounds all over his body, that told the tell tale of the fiend claws.

The claws of the fiends that held him down, were digging farther into his flesh as he struggled.

And struggle he did, and with good reason. Two fiends were using their long reptile long tongues to tickle him under the armpits. Like any other Ryu could not control the reflex movements that came with that. Ryu on the other hand bit his underlip so hard it almost started to bleed, fighting with himself to not laugh.

The second he would laugh, the fiends would slice their claws into his flesh yet again. He struggled in the grip of the fiends, trying to find someway he could break free. Then suddenly, so suddenly that Ryu winced, one of the fiends had used his claws to make another cut across his chest. Ryu looked at the fiend hatefully, as he saw the fiend take his tongue over the now bleeding wound, and grinned as he licked over the blood.

"Ssso sssweet blood.." The fiend hissed, smiling at him. Ryu could only glare back at him angry.

A flying fiend came though the opening of the cave and went over to the boss fiend that was sitting, watching and enjoying the young ninja's struggles.

"He iss here, masster." The fiend hissed. The boss fiend smiled and looked over at Ryu again

"Sooner that expected, but no matter." He smiled at Ryu, before turning to the fiends holding him. "Tie him up again, make sure it's tight, don't want him getting free to early for the show." The boss fiend said, as he stood and took his weapon in hand. Ryu was quickly and painfully flipped over on his stomach, his arms forced down behind his back yet again. they tied him up pretty much the same way as before, the only difference was that he now had rope over his chest as well, pinning his arms further. Ryu tried to struggle, make it harder for the fiends to bind him, yet there was little he could do. The boss fiend stepped up to him and lifted him up, when his was once again helpless.

"Now then, time to get our revenge at the Dragon linage." He said, carrying Ryu out of the cave.

The boss fiend dropped Ryu to the ground at a ledge that stood out from the mountain side by it self. Ryu growled angry but said nothing.

"Everyone to their places! and don't get seen!" The boss fiend ordered the lesser fiends that took of down into the woods under the cave. The boss fiend walked back into the cave, leaving Ryu alone. Ryu struggled what he was good for but it was still hopeless, uncounted wounds were screaming in pain as he moved and he could feel the blood started to drip down his skin.

Then his ninja sense kicked in as he felt his father's presence come towards him.

_"Father, it's a trap, there are fiends in the woods around this place."_ His mind sent out, knowing that his father was sure to hear it or at least feel it. Ryu hated the feeling of being the one that broth his father into this, as he should never had been captured at all. Ryu's sharp ears picked up on the low death gurgles that came, knowing that his father had taken out a few of the fiends already.

His father came through the wood land and into the clearing. Joe's eyes first scanned the woods behind him after more fiends, before turning to the cave and where Ryu sat. Joe's eyes widened ever so slightly as he saw the many cuts and wounds on his son's body.

"Ryu, are you unharmed?" He asked looking up at him, before looking around once more. Ryu nodded, but said nothing.

Then suddenly out from the cave, jumped the boss fiend and landed in front of Joe, the ninja just stepping back one step, glaring at the fiend as it stood up in it's full height.

"So you are finally here, Dragon warrior!" The fiend growled angry, his red eyes glowing.

"What a cowardly trick, even for you fiends to get to fight me." Joe growled at the fiend. The boss fiend chuckled.

"You know the rules. If you win, you get your son back alive, and if I win, I will kill your son in front of you first and then kill you. This is a challenge after all." The lizard boss said, his eyes glowed pleased. Joe said nothing, only casting one more look up at his son and raising his hand up to the Dragon Blade.

"Hahahaha! This is were the Dragon linage will end." The boss fiend laughed, as he swung his ax around in his hand. Joe's eyes narrowed dangerously as he drew the Dragon Blade and placed his body down to a strike position.

The battle began quickly and merciless. The fiend swung his ax down towards Joe's head, Joe swinging to the side, rolling himself around and slashed at the side of the fiend. The boss fiend just barely manged to get out of the way, before swinging his ax round. Joe jumped backwards out of the way and sent a shower of throwing stars towards the fiend. The fiend manged to block the worsted of it, yet a few of the stars cut across his shoulder and stomach. The fiend growled angry, his red eyes glowing with hate as Joe stood up again, holding the Dragon Blade across his face. The blade's white shine reflected in his eyes. The boss fiend rushed towards him again, roaring in anger.

Ryu could only watch as his father battled the fiend, and yet he knew that there was no way his father could lose, yet what he worried about was the lesser fiends.

He could see most of them hiding in the woods, cheering on their leader, then he felt his sense of danger rising to a new height. Ryu looked quickly around and found a single Lizard fiend coming out from the cave. Ryu growled angry as he saw the fiend holding one of the knifes he had with him, when he was captured. The fiend jumped over to him and came towards him. Ryu shifted position and glared at the fiend.

"You die now." The fiend said, as he took hold of Ryu's arm and lay the blade to his trouth.

"You know your boss wanted to kill me himself, right? He is not gonna be pleased if you rob him of that glory." Ryu growled.

"Bossss is losssing, kill ninja cub now." The fiend said. Ryu sighed low.

"Okey then." He said and smiled under his mask. Had the fiend been watching, it would have seen that Ryu had placed his feet up against the wall and as the fiend hissed pleased, ready to cut, Ryu kicked from the wall and spinned himself and the fiend around sending the fiend flying down from the ledge. The shocked scream that came from the fiend as he fell, made the boss fiend and Joe turn towards Ryu. The boss fiend roared angry, as he saw Ryu manage to get hold of the knife with his moth. Ryu forced the knife under the rope across his chest and cut it. Losing some of the hold on his arms, Ryu then placed the knife in between two rocks, in the wall behind him and turned around to free his hands. The scream from the boss had made the fiends start running towards Ryu, to prevent their prisoner from escaping. The boss fiend started to run towards him as well, but was blocked by Joe that jumped in front of him.

"Oh no you don't." Joe smiled. The boss fiend roared again and started slashing loose towards Joe.

Ryu saw the fiends rushing towards him, and how they started to climb up the wall to get to him, but they were to late. As the last of the ropes let go from his arms, Ryu jumped up, grabbing the knife and stood. He stood on the edge and saw the lizard fiends climb up towards him. Ryu's light green eyes narrowed, he lifted the knife up and jumped down towards them. Sliding down the cliff wall, he sliced into the fiends as he came down to them and ran through the the group below the cliff, swinging the knife around and killing the fiends as he went. Joe saw him coming towards him and smiled, he jumped out of the way from another blow from the boss fiend and turned to his son.

"Ryu!" He called as he drew the sword from his side. Throwing a sword towards his son, Joe once again engaged the boss fiend.

Ryu moved swiftly jumping up and taking the sword, before turning as he landed towards the fiends that where rushing towards him again. Ryu stood his ground, now armed with a sword in one hand and the knife in the other. As the first group of fiends closed in, Ryu held his arms strait out from his body and at the second the fiends were over him, Ryu moved, using both blades to slice the fiends in half. Ryu froze for a second as he realized how light and how deadly the sword was. Much more than any other sword he had held. Looking at the sword, Ryu realized that his father had thrown the Dragon Blade to him. Casting a look over to his father, he found his father smiling behind the mask. Ryu stood looking at the sword with honor, when a fiend tried to jump him. Ryu threw the knife strait into the fiend, killing him instantly. Taking hold of the Dragon blade with both hands, Ryu once again rushed into the fiends, cutting his way through them quickly. His father was attacking the boss fiend without mercy.

Soon afterwards Ryu and his father found themselves standing back to back. Before Ryu was the remaining fiends, and there were still a good number of them, before Joe stood a enraged boss fiend.

"Wanna switch?" Joe asked smiling.

"Ah," Ryu said and nodded, not taking his eyes from the fiends. The two ninjas waited unmoving, yet standing ready to the last second. As the boss fiend lifted his ax and striked, Ryu jumped over his father and locked the ax to the ground with the Dragon Blade. At the same second as Ryu started to move, a group of fiends tried to jump Ryu. Joe swung under Ryu and swung his blade around, chopping the fiends in half.

"You.." The boss fiend growled, as he looked at the young ninja. Ryu's light green eyes shined dangerously as he stared back at the fiend. Suddenly Ryu jumped up and placed a well placed kick with both legs into the fiend's chest sending him, stumbling a few steps backwards. The fiend growled angry and rushed towards Ryu.

At the same time Joe was making short work of what remained of the lesser fiends. In some way it almost seemed that Joe had been going easy on the fiends before, as it could almost have seemed that he was only waiting for Ryu to get free and go lose at the boss fiend. The fiends he was attacing now stood no chance.

As the boss fiend came towards him, Ryu sank down and gathered his strength. Just as the boss fiend got ready to strike, Ryu unleashed one of his most deadly techniques, the Ultimate Technique. Slashing into the fiend, a good dozen times with out stop before ending the attack with a jump attack, Ryu landed on the ground, breathing heavily, the Dragon Blade shining in his hands. The boss fiend crashed to the ground a few seconds later. Ryu closed his eyes and cringed sligthly. He had been ignoring the pain from the wounds, during the entire fight but now that he stopped, they seemed to scream out in pain. He stood up, trying to ignore the pain again, and swung the Dragon Blade around, making the fiend blood on it fly of.

"Well done son." His father said, coming up to him and resting a hand carefully to Ryu's shoulder. Ryu's suit was covered with the green blood of the fiends and mixed in with it his own blood from the wounds on him. Joe's white suit was as good as ruined by the dark stains of green blood and the suit was torn here and there.

Ryu turned to his father and looked at him, yet turned his eyes away from his father's, he was ashamed for getting captured, and for not getting free on his own before his father had been dragged into this.

"Father, I.." Ryu muttered, turning away. His father smiled.

"Seems like the Dragon Blade accepts you. Only in the hands of one of the dragon linage, and a warrior worthy of it's power, will it shine like that." Joe said looking down at the shining blade. Ryu looked at it, lifting it up.

"But I failed you, father." Ryu said looking at his own reflection in the blade.

"Failed?" His father asked and looked at his son. "As far as I recall, I sent you out on a mission to clean out a hive of spider fiends. Witch by all rights you did." His father smiled, there was a slight chuckle to be heard in his voice as well.

"And taking down, no less than a small army of lizard fiends and kill of a boss fiend, at the same time? If that does not qualify to the title of Master Ninja, I don't know what will." His father laughed. Ryu looked at him and smiled faintly under his mask, It was good to see his father in high spirits, especially when he knew how worried his father had been. He could feel how the terror of almost losing his only son, was letting go of his father's spirit.

"Still I should not had worried you." Ryu said. His father took his hand to his shoulder again.

"I knew you would get out of that fix yourself, all you needed was the detraction to do so." His father said. Ryu said nothing, once again his father surprised him with how much faith he put in him. Ryu looked back down at the dragon sword. He handed it back to his father.

"I am still not worthy carrying this blade yet." He said. His father smiled and took the blade back in the sheath. He loosened the sword at his waist and handed it to Ryu.

"Thanks, I belived it was the last time I would see it." Ryu smiled, glad to have the sword back. His father had given him that sword some time ago, he had it been made just for him, by the village smith.

They started to leave the area and to head back. Coming to the place where the horses waited, Ryu was nearly run over by Shadow Wind, as the horse was so thrilled to see him.

"Easy my fiend, easy. I'm alive." Ryu said petting the horse, before he flinched painfully. The wounds made by the fiends claws when they held him down, was quite deep and ran dangerously close to be infected, thanks to the fiend blood he was covered by. His father was quickly over to his side as he saw Ryu becoming unstable. Quickly taking him over to a small stream that ran there, he found some medicine in the bags on the horses and some bandages. Clearing the deepest wounds with a clout and the clean water, Joe did what he could to stop the wounds from getting more infected. Ryu tried to clean the smaller wounds, as his father bandaged the wounds on his feet and arms.

"There, that should do it until we get back." joe said as he stood. Ryu got up as well, feeling still dizzy but better. The two got on their horses and headed back towards the village.

The bond between the two of them, had be come stronger by the trust they had in each other.

**Author's note:**

**Okey so this will be a little hard to explain. **

**First of I do not own a single character in this story, those that do not belong to Team Ninja are fictional, made up just for this story. **

**Next I haven't played much of the games, but have had a lot of fun watching game play from then, and learning from a big fan and a new friend.**

**The whole thing started when I found some pictures drawn by my new friend at DA. Grugonk has a lot of pictures drawn of Ryu in some tight fixes and I was allowed to add some short fics to some of the pictures. One of those short fics made to this picture here: .com/art/Rope-burns-90480035 **

**this got so good I wanted to make the rest of it as well, that made me do this story. n the story there is also a part that hints to another picture done by her:**

**.com/art/Ticklish-Ryu-80879292**

**hope you liked it and feel free to tell me how I did.**

**Ligthingtooth**


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